STOCKS GO NOWHERE, BIOTECHS GET CRUSHED: Here's what you need to know

Stocks traded relatively little changed for much of the session.
The iShares Nasdaq biotechnology ETF sold off again, falling
as much as 6% and approaching its biggest one-day drop since
August 2011.

First, the scoreboard:

Dow:16,790.19,
+13.76, (0.08%)

S&P 500: 1,979.92, -7.13, (-0.36%)

Nasdaq: 4,748.36, -32.90, (-0.69%)

And now, Tuesday's top stories:

Crude oil prices rallied 5%. West Texas Intermediate crude
oil futures in New York rose to as high as $48.72 per barrel.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, rallied to $52. There
were two major oil-related headlines: According to Reuters, the
OPEC secretary-general, Abdullah el-Badri, said that the
12-member oil group should collaborate with non-members to deal
with the market's oversupply. Also, the US Energy
Information Administration's latest short-term energy outlook
estimated that US oil production fell by 120,000 barrels in
September.

The blue-chip Dow was elevated by
DuPont shares, which jumped as much as 11% following
Monday's news of the CEO's resignation and a downgraded
earnings forecast. CEO Ellen Kullman will retire October 16
after nearly three decades with DuPont, the company said.
Deutsche Bank analysts say the likelihood that the agricultural
giant will be broken up into two companies "has increased
substantially." There had been pressure from hedge fund Trian
to split the company.

The US
trade deficit rose to $48.3 billion in August. According to
the US Department of Commerce, the excess of imports over exports
was driven by consumer goods. The deficit with China swelled by
$4.2 billion to $32.9 billion, the highest for any country.
Deutsche Bank's Joe LaVorgna wrote to clients that the drag of a
strong dollar on exports is set to continue, and the firm lowered
its estimates for third- and fourth-quarter
gross-domestic-product estimates.

Freeport-McMoRan may abandon the oil and gas
space. In a release, the company said it was considering
spinning off the businesses to shareholders to focus on its
core copper unit. It also announced a downsizing of its board
to nine members from 16. Copper and crude oil prices have
fallen to at least six-year lows this year. Freeport-McMoRan
also aims to reduce its debt level and fund its core business
with its own resources.

The International Monetary Fund cut its outlook for global
growth for a second time this year. The IMF sees the world
economy growing 3.1% this year (2.9% prior) and 3.6% (3.2% prior)
in 2016. "The distribution of risks to global growth
remains tilted to the downside," the IMF said in its World
Economic Outlook, citing the impact of volatile commodity prices
and China's economy. It expects the US economy to grow 2.6% in
2015 and 2.8% next year.